


Somehow Survive The Fire

by Krasimer



Series: Don't Take My Sunshine Away [19]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Father Figures, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2017-07-10
Packaged: 2018-11-30 07:16:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11458689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krasimer/pseuds/Krasimer
Summary: "What is this?""I was kind of hoping you could help me figure that out. You see, in there," he flicked the tip of his finger against the paper. "It says that the results of SEP wouldn't work alongside any known nanite healing tech. The two systems would fight, nanites would try to over-repair super soldier cells. My guess would be that, whoever handed me over to you, knew that.""My tests in the last twenty years have proven the same thing," she looked up to meet his eyes. "I ran tests against the last vial of blood you had given me, every last one of them told me that I would not have been able to bring you back.""Which means that whatever did bring me back, they knew it would happen."





	Somehow Survive The Fire

The medical wing was silent when Gabriel walked through it, his fists clenched at his sides, a folder held tightly in one of them. "Angie, you here?" he called out, a frown on his face as he waited for a response. "I need to talk to you about something."

"In here," came her voice, almost too quiet, exhaustion obvious in her tone. 

He followed the sound to where she was, stopping in the door when she held up a hand. "Is everything alright?" she asked as she pulled back from the microscope she was working with. Her eyes were tired, dark circles under them telling of how little sleep she'd gotten in the last week or two. "Is Jack-"

"Jack's fine, Angie, you pulled the piece of metal out of his head and there hasn't been anything since. His memories are intact, he's back, you brought him back. This is more..." he growled wordlessly for a moment. "Angie, I need to know exactly how you brought me back."

"I didn't," she glanced at the folder he held, frowning at it. "I tried, they gave me your body and told me that you had only been dead for half an hour, the time it took for them to get you to me from the rubble of the Swiss headquarters. I tried to heal you, wanted with every fiber of my being to bring you back- Gabriel, the nanites had too much to heal. You had been dead for nearly a day," she breathed out, her entire body shaking. "You were too far gone, I...I could not save you."

He considered her for a moment. "Good," he nodded as he handed her the file. "Because this is something you need to see."

"...What is this?" Angela's frown deepened as she read through the files. "I blamed myself for your death, I always thought that, somehow, I had made a mistake. Maybe I misheard them when they said how long you had been dead, maybe- Gabriel?"

He nodded as he leaned against the wall. "Angie."

"What is this?"

"I was kind of hoping you could help me figure that out. You see, in there," he flicked the tip of his finger against the paper. "It says that the results of SEP wouldn't work alongside any known nanite healing tech. The two systems would fight, nanites would try to over-repair super soldier cells. My guess would be that, whoever handed me over to you, knew that."

"My tests in the last twenty years have proven the same thing," she looked up to meet his eyes. "I ran tests against the last vial of blood you had given me, every last one of them told me that I would not have been able to bring you back."

"Which means that whatever did bring me back, they knew it would happen."

"And if they knew it would happen-"

"They could do it again. Angie, you have to help fix me," Gabriel swallowed nervously, his eyes flaring red. Angela pressed the tip of her finger into his arm and watched the skin turn into smoke before reforming. "I've spent the last twenty years with my entire body falling apart and then putting itself back together. If they knew this could happen, they could do it to me again. I can't go back to being Reaper, not the way they had me."

He took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down. "And if they could do this to me, they could do it to Jack. We're both listed as dead but my body was recovered. Whoever did that knows that the explosion wouldn't have been enough to incinerate a body, they might be looking for him. I can't lose him, not again, I just got him back."

"I will help you," Angela's eyes were filled with a fierce sort of determination, angry and focused. 

Gabriel was shaking as he nodded once more. "I can't be Talon's mercenary, I can't be Reaper."

"We will not let you be," she whispered as he pressed his hands against his face. She closed the folder and pulled him into a tight hug, one hand curved around his shoulder. "We will not let them rip apart our family again, I will die before I lose anyone else once more."

When she pulled back and saw his face, she smiled. "We will not lose our family again."

"There are so many new ones," Gabriel muttered as he pulled away from her, pressing his back against the wall. "Hana and Lúcio and...Talon won't get them. We couldn't find his body in the wreckage; until further notice, Cionaodh Walsh is considered alive with unknown whereabouts. I refuse to think he's dead until I have his corpse in front of me."

"There's the Gabriel I know," Angela smiled and turned to set the folder on a table. "Cares about everyone, even if the way of caring is loud and angry."

Gabriel made a face and shrugged. "I-"

"You adopted a cowboy and made him part of your team because you could not stand the thought of letting them put a teenage boy into prison," Angela crossed her arms over her chest in a mimic of Gabriel's pose. "You did what you could to allow an angry young man work out his anger in the form of sparring with you, even when his abilities include summoning a dragon spirit."

"Genji needed-"

"You make jokes about antique basketball teams," Angela shook her head. "Your image as Reaper was dark and terrifying but the man behind it was, is, and always has been, soft-hearted and somewhat in love with the world."

"Shut up," Gabriel's face was flushed, his eyes flashing red and he looked away from her. "...You're missing one in that list. I remember, very distinctly, a young woman who decided to hate herself when she couldn't do the impossible."

Angela nodded. "You always did help her figure out where to go," she let her arms drop, a hand going to the necklace she wore. "When she did not know which way to turn."

"She seems to have turned out well," he gestured to her. "Best doctor I've ever met, the only person I really trust when it comes to medical procedures, hasn't given in to the probably species-wide urge to smack the rescued cowboy upside the head until his brain scrambles."

"He is not that bad," Angela laughed again, the sound clearing the air between them. "...Anymore."

"See?" Gabriel snorted. "He's better now. Think he got his head on straight when it came to a certain archer. Sharpshooters in love, God fucking help us when they fight. And you," he searched her face for a moment. "You seem so much happier than you were, Angie. Something different, something...Lighter?"

"I suppose I forgot to tell you," she gave him a guilty look, her hands twisting together. "I will see to that, I guess I must, but..."

"Angie?"

"I am in a relationship," she hedged, looking at the wall. "And you know them. And I am unsure if you would approve or not."

"Ang,"

"It's Fareeha," she said quickly, her eyes closing as if she were waiting for impact. "I am dating Fareeha Amari."

Silence followed her statement and she cracked open an eye to look at Gabriel. "I know she was one of your favorite kids, younger than myself and the daughter of a friend. I would assume that you might not approve, I just-"

"Angie," Gabriel put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm glad you're happy. I'm guessing Fareeha's happy too? She's had a crush on you since she first saw you."

Angela paused her babbling, her eyes wide as she nodded. "I hope so," she whispered. "I would like to think I make her happy, but I am not inside of her head, I do not know for certain," she looked down at her feet. "She makes me very happy."

"Good," Gabriel curled a hand under her chin and knocked a knuckle against it. "Glad you're happy. I think she's happy too, from what I've seen of her. Always goes flying above our heads when we make it out onto a mission. Think she got some of Gerard’s bravado and more than a little of Reinhardt’s recklessness somewhere along the way.” He chuckled, shaking his head as Angela laughed. “I’m happy for you, kid. Glad to see someone got out of that mess saner than they had any right to be.”

He put his arms around her again, tucking her head under his chin. “We’re just getting out family back,” he whispered. “It’s a lot to ask, but I need to ask you to help me keep it in one piece this time.”

“Perhaps I should change the saying to ‘Heroic Hearts Never Fade’,” Angela joked. “You are still the stalwart hero you have always been.”

“’Ey,” he frowned playfully at her. “I’ve never been the knight in shining armor, that’s Jack’s job.”

**Author's Note:**

> Oooh boy, we get some insight into what happened to Gabriel.
> 
> Hope you're all strapped in.
> 
> Ignore if you are not, but: Fenrir, my dude. I hope you're ready.


End file.
